Keynote address | Dr David Bernstein | Advances in treating complex patients with personality disorders
| Saturday, May 16, 2020 |
| 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM |
Presenter(s)
Dr David Bernstein
Maastricht University
Keynote address | Dr David Bernstein | Advances in treating complex patients with personality disorders
9:00 AM - 10:00 AMOutline
For the past 15 years, my colleagues and I have worked to develop effective treatments for complex patients with personality disorders, aggression, and criminal behavior. The severe attachment problems, impulsive, aggressive, and manipulative behavior, and lack of motivation of these patients often leads clinicians to find them “untreatable.” We adapted Schema Therapy (ST), an integrative form of therapy for personality disorders, for this challenging population. Our randomized clinical trial in eight forensic hospitals in the Netherlands (N=103) showed that three years of ST produced more successful outcomes than treatment-as-usual (TAU). ST patients showed greater improvements in personality disorder symptoms, greater reductions in risks and improvements in strengths, and moved more rapidly through rehabilitation, compared to TAU patients. We have subsequently developed and tested further types of interventions for these patients, including a team-based milieu treatment, SafePath, and Schema Therapy for youth with emerging personality disorders and externalizing behavior problems. The results of these studies are encouraging, causing us to re-examine assumptions about the treatability of personality disorders and providing new insights into how we can intervene more effectively with complex patients.
In this keynote presentation, I will review this research and discuss key concepts and practical advice that can help clinicians work with complex patients within or outside of the forensic field.
In this keynote presentation, I will review this research and discuss key concepts and practical advice that can help clinicians work with complex patients within or outside of the forensic field.
Biography
David is a Clinical Psychologist (PhD, New York University, 1990) and Associate Professor at Maastricht University in the Netherlands. He is one of the leading innovators in Schema Therapy, an evidence-based treatment for personality disorders. He is a former Professor of Forensic Psychotherapy (endowed chair), President of the Association for Research on Personality Disorders, and Vice-President of the International Society for Schema Therapy. He is the author or coauthor of over 120 scientific publications and book chapters on topics including psychotherapy, personality disorders, forensic psychology, child abuse and neglect, and addiction.
His publications include the book, Schema Therapy: Distinctive Features, the DVD series, Schema Therapy: Working with Modes, and the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. He is an acclaimed educator and supervisor who has trained hundreds of therapists and other mental health professionals to work with challenging patients. His Safe Path program is devoted to helping people with personality disorders, aggression, and addiction recovery and lead safer and happier lives. He has created the iModes, together with comic artist, Vick, to enable patients and therapists to recognize, understand, and work with emotional states more effectively.
